Armoured Fighting Vehicles

Angus Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will estimate the cost to the public purse of the  (a) Future Family of Light Armoured Vehicles programme,  (b) Tactical Reconnaissance Armoured Combat Equipment Requirement programme and  (c) Future Rapid Effect System Utility Vehicles programme on the latest date for which figures are available; and how many vehicles were procured under each programme.

Peter Luff: Cost information on the Future Family of Light Armoured Vehicles (FFLAV) programme, which dates from the early 1990s, is not held in the format requested.
	The estimated costs to the public purse of the other two programmes are as follows:
	As at September 2002, the cost of the Tactical Reconnaissance Armoured Combat Equipment Requirement (TRACER) Programme was some £131 million.
	The cost to date for the Future Rapid Effect System (FRES) Utility Vehicle programme is £133 million.
	While vehicles have been procured under either of the above programmes, the money invested has refined the understanding of the requirement, reduced technical risk and increased the skills of both the department and industry with specialist management and integration skills.

Military Aircraft: Procurement

Angus Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will estimate the cost of cancelling the  (a) purchase of the RC-135 Rivet Joint aircraft and  (b) Future Rapid Effect System Specialist Vehicles contract.

Peter Luff: The overall cost of the RC-135 Rivet Joint Project, through life, is circa £1.2 billion and at this early stage of the project life cycle any cancellation costs would be a small fraction of this. Rivet Joint is being acquired through the US Foreign Military Sales process which allows customers to withdraw at any time on payment of all costs incurred to date, and any unavoidable liabilities held by the US Government and its contractors.
	On 1 July 2001, the Ministry of Defence announced that a demonstration phase contract for Specialist Vehicles had been signed. The cost of a subsequent cancellation would be agreed with the contractor with the Department paying fair and reasonable costs and liabilities at the time of the cancellation.